Liftoff for Loftus?
● The Blue Bulls Rugby Union has partnered with the government and private sector in an attempt to bring fans back to an ailing Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria and its surrounds.
Redefine Properties and Abland have created Loftus Park, a mixed-use development that includes offices, shops and entertainment and is located next to what used to be the most popular rugby stadium in South Africa.
“Pretoria has been crying out for a newer, better public space. By designing Loftus Park we were able to bring impressive architecture to the Loftus precinct, something which it had been waiting years for,” said Dirk Henzen, an architect and design principal at Studio 3 Design House.
Loftus Versfeld Stadium has struggled in the face of poor ticket sales for rugby matches, partly due to the poor performance of the resident Blue Bulls team and a decision a few years ago to no longer sell or allow the consumption of alcohol in the stadium.
Redefine, which inherited the 55 000m² development from The Pivotal Fund that it bought in 2016, has developed Loftus Park in conjunction with Abland and Blue Bulls Rugby.
The development is located on land bordered to the west by Kirkness Street and to the east by Pretoria Girls High School. On the north side, the development is next to Park Street. It serves Clydesdale or Loftus residents.
Redefine’s executive chairman, Marc Wainer, said Loftus Park was very well located next to the stadium and in the heart of Pretoria’s sporting, cultural, diplomatic and schools hub.
The first phase, which includes an open-air piazza surrounded by restaurants, convenience retail, a hotel, a Virgin Active health club, new parking for the stadium and about 29 000m² of A-grade office space, began trading on March 29 this year.
“Loftus Park has been designed as a precinct that serves not only rugby goers but also people who were in need of better amenities in the area,” said Abland’s marketing director, Grant Silverman.
The Tshwane Municipality sold the land to the developers on the grounds that it would be a much-needed development for the Loftus precinct, said Mayor Solly Msimanga.
Many shopping centres and office blocks in South Africa use public space poorly. Loftus Park, however, has been designed to include large walking and sitting areas. The development will also showcase artists who do not usually get opportunities to exhibit in traditional galleries in Pretoria.
The original clubhouse of the Eastern Sports Grounds, which preceded Loftus Versfeld, has been retained.
This building later became known as the Sin Bin or Loftus Tavern. It was officially declared a heritage building and therefore the developers restored it and incorporated it into Loftus Park — enabling visitors to the precinct to see one of the oldest rugby buildings in the country.
Precinct will provide amenities for all, not only rugby fans Grant Silverman Abland’s marketing director